


Let it be

by weenisflytrap



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Galaxy Garrison, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pre-Kerberos Mission, SHEITH - Freeform, Shiro x Keith - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-30
Updated: 2018-03-05
Packaged: 2018-08-27 23:35:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8422018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/weenisflytrap/pseuds/weenisflytrap
Summary: Its a few weeks before the Kerberos mission, and Keith and his best friend Shiro are beyond excited. However Keith is starting to realize something different in his feelings for Shiro, this combined with the feeling of dread developing as the mission gets closer leads Keith to put distance between them. Shiro is nervous about the Kerberos mission, and worried about Keith who's been acting differently towards him. this story is about how badly they want to be together, but the universe is literally against them.





	1. Stranded in the desert

**Author's Note:**

> This goes on and will hopefully continue well into the forming of Voltron and the battles with Zarkon and co. but it starts pre Kerberos.

Kind of. Well Keith wasn't really stranded, just late. very, very late. He had slept in (a result of late night studying) and then his ride had run out of gas. He had run three miles back to the shack he had adopted to grab the jug of extra gasoline, and was just running back when his phone buzzed.

"WHAT." He said angrily, and out of breath.

"uh, hey buddy."

Keith immediately recognized his friend Shiro's voice.  
"where are you?" Shiro asked, trying to hide a bit of obvious worry and the fact that both of them knew where Keith was, and had been. "You've missed like three classes."

Keith smiled for the first time that morning, "uh, yeah sorry. Red broke down."

"Red" was Keith's nickname for his favorite motorcycle/hover vehicle hybrid.

A bit of silence and then Shiros clear voice cut through it "Ill come get you."

"Okay." keith said and plopped down onto the porch.  He thought for a minute about the repercussions of being late for- what was it? Three? three classes. Then stopped thinking about it promptly because he really didn't care. The only reason he even tried was Shiro, who had told him he was more than a good pilot. Shiro who had told him he could do great things, and be happy. Shiro, who Keith had been thinking about an awful lot.

keith also liked him a lot. He sat up quickly and went inside to gather up anything he had missed while rushing out (which was quite a lot). That was enough thinking for now.

Shiro arrived, maybe fifteen minutes later, saving Keith from a twenty minute run through  the dessert, and lack of almost all of his textbooks.  
He climbed into the passenger seat of the old military jeep, and began to buckle the seat belt. He heard Shiros voice again, out of his peripheral vision.

"Rough morning?"  
"No. Fine."

Shiro had often heard that combination of words, or variants of it, but still couldn't quite grasp what it meant coming from Keith. "No, I'm fine" or "No (initial denial). Okay fine, your right (resignation)".

Or just sarcasm, which was probably the most likely. Shiro had come to find the stinging humor endearing.

The car started and they sped across the dusty field, which faded into a rocky mesa. Keith looked over at Shiro, thinking absentmindedly. His garrison jacket was tied around his waist because of the heat, and the guy's arms were exposed by a gray tee, that fit nicely around his muscled frame. He was taller too, maybe a little bit intimidating. But he was undeniably soft if you looked close enough. That was something Keith really liked about him. Despite the muscle and height, there was a definite curve to the lines of his body, a gentle roundness to the cut lines of his muscular arms and back.

Keith heard a nervous laugh, and then "What are you staring at  me for?" Keith shrugged and casually looked away to hide his burning face. Jesus that's just what Keith needed. To act like even more of a freak than he already was. He still wasn't sure why Shiro hung out with him, and even called him a friend.  
That was something else Keith loved about him. With his short hair, good grades and people scrambling to be his freind, Shiro could be an ass.  But he decided to be warm and polite, and chose to be friends with possibly the least warm and friendly person at the garrison.

 Keith was the epitome of untidy rebel. Longer shaggy black hair, sharp piercing eyes and a knack for getting into fights.

Keith looked down at his hands. Bruised all over the knuckles, but not fresh ones. He hadn't gotten into a serious fight in weeks. There were a lot of boys trying to provoke him, jostling him in the halls, and it frustrated him, but not like it used too. He didn't get as angry anymore. Ever since Shiro had gotten him thinking about flying seriously, the nasty looks, whispering behind his back, the pushing and shoving none of it mattered. He was good at something. And ever since he had started training to be a pilot, his classmates had a kind of grudging respect for him. Even the teachers that wanted so badly to see him fail had to admit he was good. Really good. He had to be careful though, he couldn't spend as much time with Shiro as he wanted, or people would think Keith was using him as a shield. A way to sway the teachers and sergeants in his favor. But Shiro was so much more than that.

Old bruises. Red smudges over the base of his fingers that would fade but never truly disappear.

Keith snuck another look at Shiro, this time being careful not to space out. He saw a faint smile at the edge of Shiro's wide mouth, as he stared absentmindedly ahead.  He saw the golden reflection of the dessert in those sparkling brown eyes.  He felt a gnawing sensation in his stomach. A sensation that was shortly replaced by anger. He resisted the urge to tuck his knees up to his chest, and instead looked out the window. Letting the hot, saturated endlessness of the dessert calm him.  
it was going to be a long day.


	2. Challenge?

Shiro didn't mind picking Keith up. In fact he enjoyed the drive into the desert. The desert was quiet, ruthless, warm and most of all, fair. The mirror opposite of the garrison. It didn't care where you were from, or who you were, you were just another creature at its mercy. Shiro wasn't sure why that comforted him. Maybe it was because he understood it. He had learned alot about the desert, and the more he knew about something the less it scared him.

"Shiro?" 

He tightened his grip on the wheel. He had been feeling a little jumpy, the test for the Kerberos mission was fast approaching, and it was all that Shiro had ever wanted. To "Go where no man had gone before". But now it was soon, and he was... Hesitant? Scared? Whatever the feeling was, it tugged at the back of his mind. And he didn't know how to tell that to Keith. He didn't want Keith to see him falter. 

Keith. 

He liked that name. He liked saying it. He liked hearing his own name from the person it belonged to. He didn't know how to explain that either. 

"Yeah?"

He looked sideways at Keith, who was staring at him. Eyes as ruthless and unchanged as the desert. But right now they were cold. And almost purple? exactly like the desert at night. 

"You're nervous. The test is soon, isn't it?" 

Shiro laughed, he hoped he didn't sound as nervous as he felt, "How could you tell?"

Keith frowned. "It wasn't that hard."

Yes it was. Shiro had spoken with classmates, sat down with one of his teachers, and not a single one had noticed anything out of the ordinary. Why was it he couldn't hide from Keith? Sometimes he really wished he could. 

"don't worry about it," Keith said flatly, and turned his gaze back to the dessert. "You'll be okay."

Part of Shiro felt relieved that Keith's eyes weren't on him, he already felt a little warmer. But the other part of him missed it. He... Liked it when Keith looked at him. Keith's words were vague, but somehow felt so completely specific to what he was feeling that it made him nervous all over again. 

He was generally a little nervous around Keith for reasons he would rather leave unsaid.

He'd spent most of his time in the flight simulator the past month, practicing every possible scenario and difficulty. He was usually in there with other classmates, and he did fairly well with them. They liked him, he was friendly, he didn't make them feel stressed or inferior, and he was a good pilot. It was important when you're a pilot to communicate with your team. Shiro had gotten pretty good at it. But he never did as well as he did when he was out in the dessert with Keith, on that hover thing. Keith referred to it fondly as "Red" though honestly it was brown by now. Keith had taught him that talent is useless if you can only fly in perfect conditions.  
If Keith passed his own test today, they might be able to hang out that evening and practice some more.

~

Their classes at the garrison went pretty smooth. Until Arthur tried to "talk" with Keith. Arthur had, for the past 6 months, been one of the main reason for Keith being up shit creek with the school.  A tall guy that looked and acted a lot more intimidating than he was. 

Keith had a bad habit of zoning other people out. In Arthurs mind, him and Keith had some kind of epic rivalry. One that had started (ironically enough), because Keith hadn't realized there was a set of hidden rules that everyone but him somehow understood, even though no one ever talked about them.  
Keith didn't remember exactly what he had done to make Arthur mad, probably a combination of things to be honest. 

The only thing that kept him from getting into a fight every hour was that while he was very angry by nature, he wasn't petty. And that's all Arthur was. 

 "You nervous?" Keith heard the tall boys voice behind him. He just wanted to sit alone in the cafeteria and eat crap that he didn't have to make himself. 

"What?"

Arthur was in front of him now, leaning on the table, obviously trying to make Keith feel cornered. Which wasn't really working considering there was open space behind him. And, unknown to Arthur, despite the difference in size Keith could most definitely kick his stupid ass into next month. 

"Don't play dumb. About that cargo pilot?"

Keith paused again. "What." 

Arthur laughed far to loudly, drawing a couple heads to Keith's table. 

"He's getting good. Might even take your place as golden boy's 'bestie'."

"I'm not Shirogane's bestie."

"Aw you'd hurt his feelings if you said that to him." 

"Okay?"

Keith's lack of reaction generally got him to back off after awhile, he got bored quickly. Keith looked at Arthurs brown eyes. Not Shiro brown, cold, stupid brown. Like dog shit in winter. Keith realized his train of thought and tried to avoid wondering why, to him, "Not like Shiro's" was an insult. 

"Whatever. Just do yourself a favor, dude," Keith tried not to wince at dude, "and watch out for Lance. And me."  
He grinned, as if he had just threatened Keith, not spouted a load of horse shit. But Keith grinned back. This is what boys did right? It was one of the rules. "Good natured teasing" was what the teachers called it, and that's what it was. Until someone stepped out of line. 

Then it turned into six against one on the roof of the dorm building.  
Something Keith probably should've been more opposed too.

Keith took his cafeteria issued knock-off caprisun, and tried to drink it as condescendingly as possible.  He saw a vein pop in Arthurs neck and was satisfied as the tall child stormed off, obviously angry that Keith hadn't decided to throw  a punch. Part of him felt sorry, and even a little sympathetic. Keith knew what it was like to have pent up anger, and no way to get rid of it. It was just Arthurs way of coping. Everyone had a coping mechanism. Something else Shiro had taught him. Keith wondered what Shiro's was.  

Probably classical music.


	3. Coping mechansim

Shiro was surprised the garrison had a gym available to students and was intensely greatful for it. Even better though, was that most of the students didn't know it was there. It was conveniantly located near the kitchens which, in Shiro's opinion, seemed a little counter productive. 

Then again, he wasn't here for his health. 

Once again his fist made contact with a punching bag, the sound of soft red PU leather gloves against black leather and sand. Shiro didn't box. Shiro didn't do anything besides fly, study and talk with Keith whenever there was time between the two other things. 

Since most of his time was spent at the desk in his dorm or the cockpit of the flight simulator, he couldn't help but be a little high strung. He had tried running but it took too long. He needed to get rid of energy fast or it would build up and he'd start getting clumsy and cranky, which seemed a little too personal a side of him to show his classmates.

Shiro's code of conduct was "Be friendly, from a safe distance". 

The clock buzzed, and Shiro felt a knot form in his stomach. Keith would be in the simulator now. Shiro was getting ready to graduate so he had already taken and passed the proficiancy test with flying colors. Now it was Keith's turn, and he didnt work so well with others. 

Actually, Shiro was pretty sure Keith did better outside the simulator, by himself. He moved quickly and often physically couldn't take the time to speak and explain what was going on. 

He took a deep breath, and stepped away from the punching bag. He removed the gloves, and used his now blotchy hands to wipe sweat off his forehead. Everything about him felt like an open sore right now, he didn't know if he would be selected for the Kerberos mission, and even if he was, he didn't know if he could handle actually being in space. Space was something far away and distant, always just out of reach, something you could want because it was unobtainable. Now it could be less than a week away, and Shiro was starting to wonder if he should trespass on that sacred ground (or lack of). 

Out there, he was the alien. 

He sighed. Keith only needed to make it through one hour with a kid named Arthur, then they could disappear for the rest of the night.


	4. A miracle?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry it took so long to update this I lost steam and the hate made me bitter but I'm back for now, and I'm gonna finish this up pretty quickly because I have some neat shit I wanna get started on.

The simulation had gone well. By some incredible means, Keith hadn't murdered anyone. It was more intense than the simulations usually were, covered more difficulties and errors they would need to be prepared for, but he had made it. And the weirdest part? Everyone had cooperated. Faceless Arthur hadn't made any unnecessary jabs, that girl with the high pitched voice and brown hair had actually paid attention to what was going on. 

He passed with flying colors. 

He needed to tell Shiro. 

Keith knew he'd be at the gym and went as quickly as he could, he just needed to get out of here fast, he had too much energy. He was exhilarated, giddy, proud and had no outlet for it, he needed to be in the dessert.  
He rounded the corner and found the gym empty, the sun was going down and the last light of the day was coming in. Had he gone home already? 

"Your friend left an hour ago, told me to tell you he was at the campus mechanics." 

Keith hadn't realized anyone was there, but he barely thanked the gym teacher before rushing out. It took him awhile to find the mechanic because he wasn't there often, but he managed and  by the time he got to the garage it was almost completely dark. Shiro was standing with his arms crossed over his chest. When he saw Keith there was an anxious question in his eyes, one that quickly disappeared when he saw Keith's face.

"You did it!" He cried out as Keith ran towards him, a grin splitting his face. There was a moment as he reached Shiro where he realized he was about to jump into his arms and side-stepped, fighting against his own body's impulse to embrace Shiro. His legs hurt from the effort and he didn't know what to say. He might've imagined it, but he though he saw Shiro's hands tense, his fingers twitch towards Keith. 

"I got your... ride towed." Shiro pointed behind him to where his hover bike was siting comfortably. 

"I thought it just needed gas?" 

Shiro shook his head, "Gasoline isn't the solution to every form of vehicular trouble."

"Okay I'm tired of his conversation."

Shiro raised an eyebrow, this was an old game, "A good pilot," Keith rolled his eyes as Shiro continued, "needs to know how to fix his own craft. What if your engineer gets injured? What if you don't have  an engineer?"

Keith laughed, "I don't care how to fix it, I just need to drive it. The point of a crew is everyone does their part." 

They had had this conversation over and over, it always started with Keith saying something offhand, Shiro saying the same thing, "A good pilot..."  and both of them ending up agreeing that they should just stick together in space so Keith wouldn't die without food or water and Shiro wouldn't fly himself directly into the sun.

There was a pause, filled with expectancy, and Keith bit the tip of his tongue to keep from breaking it with a laugh.   
But Shiro didn't shoot back. Instead he looked sideways at the hover bike, then back at Keith.

"You wanna get out of here?"

Keith's favorite set of words.


End file.
